7 Reasons You Should Add Banana to Your Daily Diet

Is banana a go-to fruit? What are the difference between the varieties? What benefits has it on your health? If you want to get all of these answers and more, then continue to read this article!

Some says that bananas are full of sugar, some says that they are the perfect snack. It’s complicated to know the truth.

That’s true, bananas have some natural sugar. However, they also are a great source of essential vitamins and minerals, including potassium, magnesium, fiber, and much more.

I’m sure you notice that eating a banana before a workout provides the perfect source of energy. You may not know it, but they’re pretty good for your post-workout too as they will help you to repair muscles!

First thing first, let’s see where does this yellow fruit come from!

Banana Or The Indian Eden Fruit

This yellow fruit is thought to originate from Malaysia. First time it was identified was in India, between 600 to 500 years BC. Apparently, it would exist for much longer time and be one million years old.

An Indian legend even states that banana is the forbidden fruit that Eve gave Adam. That’s why it’s also called “Eden Fruit” in this country. The latin plantain banana’s name, “paradisiaca”, has been called this way thanks to this belief.

Banana’s trade was limited a lot because this fruit doesn’t support a long journey. It’s only in the 20th century that the yellow fruit became popular as preservation techniques and faster transports were developed.

Deep Focus: the Banana Tree

As most of tropical fruits, banana grows in tropical and subtropical climates. The main banana’s producers in the world are India, Brazil, Philippines, Ecuador and Indonesia.

Bananas grow on the floral stem, after the bloom of purple flowers in clusters. The banana tree can be 3 to 8 meters high. It has long leaves that can measure up to 3 meters. Their thicker base intersect regularly with each others and create a pseudostem.

The banana tree only produce bananas once. After that, the plant will dry and a new one will appear. Note that if you’re growing a banana tree, you’ll have to be patient and wait for 1 year before picking up your bananas!

Find Your Perfect Banana!

There are 3 banana’s varieties that you can find:

The regular ones: which are soft and have a yellow peel. On some types, the peel can be red, pink or purple. Some will be really small, other pretty big.The small ones are very delicates, that’s why it’s uncommon to find some to non producer countries.

The plantain one: is also called the cooking banana. It’s a staple food in Africa, India, Malaysia and South America. Its flesh is thicker and less sweet. Be careful, this type of banana is not edible if they’re not cooked, even when they’re mature.

The not edible ones

Note that bananas are picked up when they’re still green on the tree. This way, they will be way tastier!

Banana Nutrition Facts

For 100g of banana, you have:

Water: 74%

Proteins: 1g

Fats: 0,5g

Carbs: 23g

Calories: 92

Carbs are converting along with the maturation. First, carbs are starches that are not edible. Then, they become fructose, glucose and saccharose, which are assimilated much better by your body. That’s why the green banana is almost not edible and the mature one is really sweet.

Tips to Buy, Store, and Cook Banana

Good thing when you’re buying bananas is that you’ll see directly from their peel if they’re good or not. When they are mature their peel is a yellow and a bit shiny with small brown spots. Chose bananas that seem intact and not too thick. Avoid the green, cracked and too soft ones.

Bananas are a pretty complicate fruit to store. Indeed, they react negatively to temperature fluctuations, especially when they’re not mature yet. Best it to keep them at room temperature. However, if you need them to get mature faster, put them in a paper bag. When they’re mature, put them in your fridge so that you can preserve them for a few more days. Don’t forget to remove them from your fridge a few hours eating them so that they will have more flavour. Another solution is to freeze them (for 2 months maximum). Add some lemon juice if you don’t want them to get darker. You can use them in your cakes, ice creams or smoothies.

Well you have many ways to use banana. First and easiest is to eat it fresh but you can also cooked it.

Fresh or baked with some spices, such as ginger or cinnamon and with lime juice

Add some banana to dairy products like your ice creams, yogurts, and sorbets

Use it instead of sugar in your cakes, muffins, and tarts

Now that your know everything on bananas, check out some of the recipes we selected for you below. If you re-create them, make sure to tell us in the comment section below or tag us on Instagram 🙂

Top 4 Ways to Snack Bananas with Easy & Healthy Recipes

Homemade Baked Banana Chips

This 2 ingredients guilt-free recipe is so easy to make and are the perfect portable, healthy snack to have on hand. What's more: it's full of vitamin C, potassium, and fiber.

Prep Time10 minsCook Time3 hrsTotal Time3 hrs 10 mins

Ingredients

10 ripe , but firm bananas, thinly sliced

freshly squeezed lemon juice

Ingredients

Ingredients

10 ripe , but firm bananas, thinly sliced

freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

1

This 2 ingredients guilt-free recipe is so easy to make and are the perfect portable, healthy snack to have on hand. What's more: it's full of vitamin C, potassium, and fiber.

Directions

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